Abstract

For the real time detection of atmospheric CH₂O with ultra high sensitivity and excellent selectivity, a cw tunable mid-IR spectroscopic source based on difference frequency generation (DFG) has been developed. The motivation for such a laser source is the acquisition of high quality CH₂O concentration measurements. Formaldehyde is an important intermediate present in all regions of the atmosphere and in testing the current understanding of hydrocarbon photochemistry. CH₂O plays also a critically important role in the chemistry of the urban atmosphere because of health effects associated with CH₂O, as well as its role in ground-level ozone formation.

© 2000 IEEE